Four minor schoolgirls who went missing together from Bihar’s Gaya district have been safely recovered by police from Mumbai. The girls had left home on September 9 saying they were going to school but did not return by evening, prompting their families to file a complaint.
All four girls are residents of the same village under Wazirganj police station in Gaya. Three of them study in Class 11, while one is a Class 10 student.
According to their families, the girls left home for school as usual on September 9. They were reportedly required to fill out examination forms at the school. Their families expected them to return at the scheduled time, but concern grew when they did not come home by evening.
The families initially searched for the girls themselves. They looked at the school, relatives’ homes, friends’ houses and nearby areas, but could not trace them. The families then submitted an application at Wazirganj police station seeking their recovery. The disappearance of four minor girls together prompted police to begin an investigation.
Police first tried to establish whether the girls had actually reached school that day. During the investigation, the police team visited the High School at Sakardas Nawada and sought information from the school management.
The school administration confirmed that three of the missing girls studied there. Police collected information related to their attendance, arrival and departure from the school, and their activities that day.
Police then turned to technical evidence during the investigation. The activities of the girls’ mobile phones, call detail records and locations were examined.
The initial investigation indicated that the girls’ mobile phones were switched off at around 9:30 am and that their last location was found around the school. Police also examined CCTV footage from Gaya Junction and several other important locations.
As the investigation progressed, police traced the girls’ location to Mumbai. A police team was subsequently sent to Mumbai without delay. Acting on leads obtained through the technical investigation, the team recovered all four girls safely.
On Tuesday, the seventh day after the incident, police brought the four girls to Wazirganj police station. Their safe recovery brought relief to their families.
It has not yet been established how the four girls travelled from Gaya to Mumbai. Police are investigating who accompanied them, how the plan to travel to Mumbai was made and what their purpose was.
Investigators are also trying to determine whether the girls were in contact with anyone or whether they decided to travel to Mumbai themselves.
During the earlier stages of the investigation, police examined several possible angles, including abduction. Wazirganj DSP Abhinav Kumar had said that technical evidence and call detail records were being examined.
At that stage, police had not found any conclusive evidence confirming that the girls had been forcibly taken away by another person. The possibility that the girls had gone somewhere together was also being investigated.
Following the recovery, police are completing the further legal process. According to police, the four girls will be produced before the court and their statements will be recorded.
The statements of the girls and facts emerging during the investigation will help establish the circumstances of the case. Police will also determine where the girls were staying in Mumbai and what person or means of transport was involved in their journey there.
The technical investigation played an important role in tracing the girls. Police prioritised examination of mobile locations, call detail records, CCTV footage and possible routes after the four minors went missing together.
Police will now seek to establish the circumstances in which the girls travelled to Mumbai after leaving home. Further action in the case will be based on their statements and the facts emerging during the investigation.
